I might add, but I won't replace

First, I read On rearranging the conditions of the test, at Tamora Pierce's blog, about how maybe it would be more useful for comic folks interested in good female characters to go somewhere other than Marvel and DC. I think this is aimed more at creators than at fans (and there's no chance I'll be writing any comic books, or having any interest in doing so! :)) but still had some interesting points for those of us on the receiving end.

Then, I read Give up all this? at Ragnell's blog, all about why feminist comic fans shouldn't have to stop reading mainstream comics and throw all our support behind independent creators. This is pretty close to my own feeling on the subject, other than I'm actually pretty happy, most of the time, with the comics I get right now.

And then I read On comic book feminism at Kalinara's blog, on mostly the same thing only with some examples of how things are changing, slowly but hopefully-surely, at the big two companies.

Anyway.

I'm a pretty big comic book fan. I love my comics, share them with my kids, buy an occasional action figure. My love of comics is rooted in my childhood and I maintain a strong preference for those titles and characters I grew up with, and although I've certainly added to the list since then, the new books tend to connect somehow to the old ones. So, am I likely to stop buying my Marvels? Nope. Doing that would eliminate not all, but a fair chunk of the reason I buy them at all, the long-term connection I feel to them.

And even without the nostalgia factor, I like the comics I buy, for the most part. While I recognize a lot of the...um, less enlightened?... stuff in comics now, I can't really think of a time when it's ruined a book for me. Maybe it's because I'm old and I expect less, remembering the vastly-underused heroines I grew up with. Maybe I'm extra-hard to offend. Maybe I'm a bad feminist (not as in "evil," as in "not very good at it"). Maybe I'm just not all that picky. So, at least at this point, I'm not going to leave for reasons of quality or philosophy because I'm okay with both. I might be okay-er with more change, but really, I'm good.

You know, though, like I said, I'm open to trying new things. (Within the confines of the comic budget, of course.) Someone starts a new company publishing superhero comics with a more feminist slant? I'd look at that, even check it out if it looked good. I can't honestly say that I'd like it better than what I read now. After all, there's the nostalgia factor to consider. But I'm potentially open to adding new comics to my get list. I guess I'll keep reading the reviews. :)